Domestic Well Owner Resources

Maintaining your domestic well

1. Have your well sounded

This will require hiring a contractor. This method will give you an accurate groundwater depth at your exact well location.

2. Have your water quality tested

Fresno County
Free water quality sampling of Bacteriological, Nitrate, and in some cases DBCP is available to well owners as a part of their permit fee. If you have not previously received your free sampling, contact Fresno County to make arrangements at (559) 600-3357 and ask to speak with the water specialist. Sampling for any other constituents requires hiring a contractor.

Kings Water Alliance
If you live in MAGSA and your household water comes from a well, you may be eligible for a free well test to test for unsafe nitrate contamination. The Kings Water Alliance is a local non-profit that will test your well and provide bottled water delivery to your home at no cost if your well is found to have unsafe levels of nitrate. Learn more, and find if you are eligible by filling out their 2-minute survey here.

3. Contact MAGSA for latest readings at monitoring wells in the area

Although it may not be as accurate as a measurement taken at the exact well site, monitoring wells represent the general groundwater conditions within your vicinity.

4. Understand signs that indicate your well is vulnerable to going dry

You notice sputtering air pockets when you are running water.
There is sand or sediment in the water.
The water is not clear, but muddy.
Water tastes or smells funny.
Water pressure has declined.
Neighbors report same problems.

Call MAGSA at (559) 515-3339 or send us an email at info@mcmullinarea.org if you are concerned your well is vulnerable to going dry.

What to do if your domestic well goes dry

1. Review this guide from the California Department of Water Resources

2. Contact MAGSA

Call (559) 515-3339 or send us an email at info@mcmullinarea.org to discuss groundwater conditions and a path forward to ensure a secure future water supply.

3. Determine if you are eligible for free resources through programs like:

4. Hire a well driller

A well driller can either deepen your existing well or drill a new well. Call MAGSA for advice on depth and for recommended contractors in your area.

5. Work with MAGSA as we review new well permit applications

Read this memo from MAGSA’s General Manager on Governor Newsom’s Executive Order requiring GSAs approve new well permits.

Domestic Well Mitigation

Landowners within MAGSA’s service area may be eligible for well mitigation for wells used solely for domestic purposes that go dry or fall within ten (10) feet of going dry entirely due to lowering groundwater levels. To be considered for mitigation the well failure must be a direct result of groundwater level declines caused by groundwater pumping in the MAGSA service area.

Requirements for qualifying for mitigation include some of the following:

Not Retroactive: MAGSA will not provide retroactive funding assistance Wells that went dry prior to October 1, 2024 will not be eligible for reimbursement.
Well Age: Dry domestic wells up to fifty (50) years old at the time of the application submission may be eligible for well mitigation assistance. Any mitigation assistance that MAGSA may provide will decrease proportionately with the age of the well.
Income Requirements: To be eligible for MAGSA to provide any mitigation assistance, the applicant must have an income that is equal to or less than 80% of the statewide median household income in the State of California.
Land Ownership: The applicant must be the owner of the well and surrounding land. Renters and lessees will not be eligible to apply but may contact their landowner and coordinate to receive assistance.
Good Standing with MAGSA: The landowner/well owner must be in good standing with MAGSA (i.e., no late taxes, fees, assessments, or other charges due) and in compliance with all other MAGSA Policies.

MAGSA may provide interim water including bottled water delivery or bulk water storage tanks if applicable.

For complete details of MAGSA’s Domestic Mitigation Rules and Regulations click HERE.

To be considered for well mitigation please complete the Domestic Well Mitigation Request Form below.

Domestic Well Mitigation Request Form